Thai Beef Curry & Canteloupe Salad

Today was Rob’s birthday, and he requested a re-creation of the Thai Beef Curry he usually orders at a local restaurant. I could not find a recipe that was a match in terms of ingredients, so I found the closest recipe I could find, and adapted it. (This recipe, in its original form also appears in last Thursday’s menu planning entry). I had already planned to substitute carrots, and onions for the spinach and mushrooms, but as I actually cooked the dish I made a few other changes. I also had the serendipity of hearing a recipe for a Thai Cantaloupe Salad on Lynne Rossetto Kasper’s “Splendid Table” radio show, which I was able to get from the show’s website. I made it, along with rice, to accompany the curry, and the birthday boy (“birthday man” just sounds strange) said it met his expectations. Whew!

Here’s the curry recipe again, with the changes I made. I’m sure its delicious made “by-the-book,” but I can absolutely vouch for it as I produced it tonight.

Directions:
Mix the beef strips with oil and garlic. Heat wok on high. Stir-fry the beef strips in batches 1 minute, removing each batch when cooked. Before returning beef strips to wok, add capsicum (sliced) and sliced mushrooms with a sprinkling of water. Stir for 2 minutes. (I cooked the beef, garlic, carrots, peppers and onions all together because I couldn’t see how the carrots would ever get cooked, otherwise. I did not remove the beef from the pan at any point. The vegetables cooked perfectly in the time it took the meat to brown, and then I drained the fat from the pan).